BEECH GROVE, Ky. (11/17/13) — Two children who found worldwide acclaim through their inspirational battles with childhood cancer continue to make an impact. Today, the Thumbs Up for Lane Goodwin Childhood Cancer Foundation and the Live Like Bella™ Foundation for Childhood Cancer announce the joint funding of the $180,000 “Lane-Bella Project.”

The Lane-Bella Project is a new clinical trial focusing on Rhabdomyosarcoma, the aggressive childhood cancer that took the lives of both Lane Goodwin, age 13, and Bella Rodriguez-Torres, age 10. Under the direction of Charles Keller, M.D., an associate professor of pediatric oncology at Oregon Health and Science University Doernbecher Children’s Hospital and a member of the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute, the study will focus on finding an antibody to stop the growth of childhood muscle cancers. Once complete, children around the world could benefit from these new innovations as early as 2015.

The trial is the largest project to be funded by the two foundations, with each contributing $90,000, and includes the $20,000 donation that the MLB National League Rookie of the Year, Marlins Pitcher Jose Fernandez, directed to the Live Like Bella™ after receiving the honor.

“I want to help children with cancer. I’m proud to support life changing research to help find a cure,” said Fernandez.

Gifts designated for the Lane-Bella Project will also be applied to the historic Knight Cancer Challenge. Nike co-founder Phil Knight and his wife, Penny, will match OHSU’s fundraising efforts if it meets its $500 million fundraising goal by the end of 2015, totaling $1 billion to advance the Knight Cancer Institute’s vision to end cancer as we know it. To learn more, Click Here.

Up for Lane Goodwin Childhood Cancer Foundation works in memory of its founder, Lane Goodwin. It funds cutting edge research to find a cause and a cure for childhood cancers, empowers families to advocate on behalf of their children, and provides financial assistance to families through the “Changing Lanes” program. For more information, Click Here.

*The Live Like Bella™ Foundation was founded in memory of Bella Rodriguez-Torres. It funds innovative pediatric cancer research, provides recreational support for families with children in treatment and assists families who have lost a child to cancer. For more information, Click Here.